We know it can be hard to sell a product you can’t have fun with. And we know your clients aren’t necessarily made of cash – there are lots of things they’d rather spend money on than the ‘need to have’ things in life like protection. That’s why we believe it’s important to provide cover where it matters, and quality where it counts. And that’s why we’ve improved our menu to do just that.

Can you believe that almost 90% of our critical illness claims are for just five conditions? That’s what we mean by cover where it matters. Rather than covering more and more illnesses, we believe providers should offer the best cover they can for conditions people are more likely to get.

The current level of interest rates can lead clients to question whether an annuity continues to offer the best solution for their hard-earned pension pot. While this concern is understandable, annuities still offer a solid combination of low risk and the lifetime guaranteed income. In addition, many people are not aware that they might qualify for an enhanced annuity which could increase their income by a significant amount.

ABI research shows that nearly half of all retirees qualify for an enhanced annuity on the basis of their health, yet only about one in five1 actually applies.

The protection market is decreasing year after year, despite the UK population growing by 1,000 people every day. So we need to take action. Otherwise more and more families won’t be adequately protected if the worst happened.

The bedrock of financial planning

The financial and emotional impacts on family life following illness or death can be devastating.

It’s a sad fact that a child loses a parent every 22 minutes here in the UK.

Is it better to intervene to “kill off” toxic products and will that destroy innovation in the market? This dilemma sits at the heart of the FSA’s consultation on product intervention.

The free marketeer in me is horrified at the thought that any regulator, however skilled or well meaning, could be allowed to arbitrarily decide that a product was “toxic” and cannot be sold. After all, sophisticated investors are perfectly capable of discerning where risk lies and are happy to use these kinds of products in their overall investment approach.